HB 103 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
A bill to be entitled 1
An act relating to taxpayer delinquencies; amending s. 2
213.21, F.S.; requiring the Department of Revenue to 3
convene an informal conference regarding delinquencies 4
in the payment of tax, interest, or penalties; 5
specifying procedures for such informal conferences; 6
requiring the department to take no action during the 7
course of the informal conferencing; requiring the 8
department to compromise a taxpayer's liability for 9
certain taxes and interest under specified conditions; 10
creating a rebuttable presumption if a taxpayer does 11
not provide specified records requested by the 12
department; authorizing the department to set tle or 13
compromise certain penalties under specified 14
circumstances; amending s. 213.67, F.S.; requiring the 15
department to give notice of the amount of a 16
delinquency to attempt to informally resolve the 17
delinquency; specifying that the taxpayer must receive 18
assistance from the taxpayers' rights advocate; 19
requiring the department to issue a notice of intent 20
to garnish under specified circumstances; providing 21
form and contents of a notice of intent to garnish; 22
providing construction; conforming a cross -reference; 23
providing an effective date. 24
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HB 103 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
Be It Enacted by the Legislature of the State of Florida: 26
27
Section 1. Paragraph (a) of subsection (3) of section 28
213.21, Florida Statutes, is amended to read: 29
213.21 Informal conferences; compromises. — 30
(3)(a) If requested by a taxpayer, the department must 31
convene an informal conference to discuss a compromise of the 32
taxpayer's liability for any tax, interest, or penalty. The 33
department may request to review the taxpayer's expenses, 34
assets, and profit records for the period under dispute to 35
determine the legitimacy of the taxpayer's financial status. 36
From the time the taxpayer requests an informal conference until 37
the informal conference is concluded, the department must place 38
a hold on the account and may take no action, including issuing 39
a writ of garnishment, freezing of bank accounts, or assessing 40
additional penalties. A taxpayer's liability for any tax or 41
interest specified in s. 72.011(1) in excess of 25 percent of 42
the disputed tax amount shall may be compromised by the 43
department upon the grounds of doubt as to liability for or 44
collectibility of such tax or interest. A taxpayer's liability 45
for interest under any of the chapters specified in s. 72.011(1) 46
shall be settled or compromised in whole or in part when ever or 47
to the extent that the department determines that the delay in 48
the determination of the amount due is attributable to the 49
action or inaction of the department. A taxpayer's liability for 50
HB 103 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
penalties under any of the chapters specified in s. 72.011(1) 51
may be settled or compromised if it is determined by the 52
department that the noncompliance is due to reasonable cause and 53
not to willful negligence, willful neglect, or fraud. If the 54
taxpayer does not provide adequate records as requested by the 55
department, a rebuttable presumption is created that a 56
taxpayer's noncompliance is due to willful negligence, willful 57
neglect, or fraud. A taxpayer's liability for penalties under 58
any of the chapters specified in s. 72.011(1), up to 25 percent 59
of the tax, may be se ttled or compromised if the department 60
determines that reasonable cause exists and that penalties in 61
excess of 25 percent of the disputed tax amount were compromised 62
because the noncompliance was not due to willful negligence, 63
willful neglect, or fraud. The facts and circumstances are 64
subject to de novo review to determine the existence of 65
reasonable cause in any administrative proceeding or judicial 66
action challenging an assessment of penalty under any of the 67
chapters specified in s. 72.011(1). A taxpayer who establishes 68
reasonable reliance on the written advice issued by the 69
department to the taxpayer will be deemed to have shown 70
reasonable cause for the noncompliance. In addition, a 71
taxpayer's liability for penalties under any of the chapters 72
specified in s. 72.011(1) in excess of 25 percent of the tax 73
shall be settled or compromised if the department determines 74
that the noncompliance is due to reasonable cause and not to 75
HB 103 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
willful negligence, willful neglect, or fraud. The department 76
shall maintain records of all compromises, and the records shall 77
state the basis for the compromise. The records of compromise 78
under this paragraph shall not be subject to disclosure pursuant 79
to s. 119.07(1) and shall be considered confidential information 80
governed by the provis ions of s. 213.053. 81
Section 2. Subsections (1), (2), and (3) of section 82
213.67, Florida Statutes, are amended to read: 83
213.67 Garnishment. — 84
(1)(a) If a person is delinquent in the payment of any 85
taxes, penalties, and interest owed to the departmen t, the 86
executive director or his or her designee must may give notice 87
of the amount of such delinquency by registered mail , by 88
personal service, or by electronic means, including, but not 89
limited to, facsimile transmissions, electronic data 90
interchange, or use of the Internet, to the taxpayer to attempt 91
to informally resolve the delinquency using the procedures in s. 92
213.21. Upon request, the taxpayer must receive assistance from 93
the taxpayers' rights advocate. 94
(b) If the taxpayer fails to request an info rmal 95
conference within 30 days after receiving the notice identifying 96
the amount of the delinquency under paragraph (a) or if the 97
taxpayer fails to pay the amount agreed upon in a closing 98
agreement, and before the department may initiate a garnishment 99
action, the department must issue to the delinquent taxpayer and 100
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
all persons having in their possession or under their control 101
any credits or personal property, exclusive of wages, belonging 102
to the delinquent taxpayer, or owing any debts to such 103
delinquent taxpayer at the time of receipt by them , a written 104
notice of intent to garnish. The notice must: 105
1. Be printed in a font size no smaller than 14 -point; 106
2. Be titled "Notice of Intent to Garnish"; 107
3. Explain the process involved in a garnishment action; 108
and 109
4. Provide a timeframe, which may not be sooner than 45 110
days from the date printed on the notice of intent to garnish, 111
to grant the taxpayer time to respond to the of such notice. 112
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This paragraph does not limit or prevent the department from 114
using the procedures in s. 213.21. 115
(c) Thereafter, Any person who has received a notice of 116
intent to garnish been notified may not transfer or make any 117
other disposition of such credits, other personal property, or 118
debts until the executive director or his or her designee 119
consents to a transfer or disposition or until 60 days after the 120
receipt of the such notice of intent to garnish . However, the 121
credits, other personal property, or debts that exceed the 122
delinquent amount stipulated in the notice are not subject to 123
this section, wherever held, if the taxpayer does not have a 124
prior history of tax delinquencies. If during the effective 125
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
period of the notice of intent to garnish to withhold, any 126
person so notified makes a ny transfer or disposition of the 127
property or debts required to be withheld under this section, he 128
or she is liable to the state for any indebtedness owed to the 129
department by the person with respect to whose obligation the 130
notice was given to the extent o f the value of the property or 131
the amount of the debts thus transferred or paid if, solely by 132
reason of such transfer or disposition, the state is unable to 133
recover the indebtedness of the person with respect to whose 134
obligation the notice was given. If th e delinquent taxpayer 135
contests the intended levy in circuit court or under chapter 136
120, the notice under this section remains effective until that 137
final resolution of the contest. Any financial institution 138
receiving such notice will maintain a right of set off for any 139
transaction involving a debit card occurring on or before the 140
date of receipt of such notice. 141
(2) All persons who have received a notice of intent to 142
garnish under paragraph (1)(b) been notified must, within 5 days 143
after receipt of the notice , advise the executive director or 144
his or her designee of the credits, other personal property, or 145
debts in their possession, under their control, or owing them, 146
and must advise the executive director or designee within 5 days 147
after coming into possession or control of any subsequent 148
credits, personal property, or debts owed during the time 149
prescribed by the notice. Any such person coming into possession 150
HB 103 2023
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F L O R I D A H O U S E O F R E P R E S E N T A T I V E S
or control of such subsequent credits, personal property, or 151
debts may not transfer or dispose of them d uring the time 152
prescribed by the notice or before the department consents to a 153
transfer. 154
(3) During the last 30 days of the 60 -day period set forth 155
in paragraph (1)(c) subsection (1), the executive director or 156
his or her designee may levy upon such credi ts, other personal 157
property, or debts. The levy must be accomplished by delivery of 158
a notice of levy by registered mail, upon receipt of which the 159
person possessing the credits, other personal property, or debts 160
shall transfer them to the department or pay to the department 161
the amount owed to the delinquent taxpayer. 162
Section 3. This act shall take effect July 1, 2023. 163